Latest news with #PointCook
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Inside the lair of alleged Melbourne childcare monster Joshua Dale Brown - as his Point Cook home goes up for rent
The home of a childcare worker charged with more than 70 sex offences against infants and toddlers was advertised for rent the day its occupant's alleged crimes were revealed. Joshua Dale Brown was arrested in May after police raided his two-storey residence at Point Cook in Melbourne 's south-western suburbs and allegedly found child abuse material. The three-bedroom, two-bathroom house which 26-year-old Brown shared with another man was offered for rent at $500-a-week on Tuesday, but the keys would not be available until August 7. 'This beautifully presented home located opposite parkland in one of Point Cook's finest locations, Innisfail Estate, offers a relaxed, low-maintenance lifestyle,' advertising material states. Brown is facing charges including the sexual penetration of a child under 12, attempted sexual penetration of a child under 12 and sexual assault of a child under 16. He is further accused of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child, producing child abuse material and recklessly contaminating goods to cause alarm or anxiety. Brown's eight alleged victims were aged between five months and two years. Police have said a major investigation into Brown followed the execution of a search warrant at his home, which allegedly uncovered a cache of child abuse material. The home (above) of a childcare worker charged with more than 70 offences against infants and toddlers was advertised for rent the day its occupant's alleged crimes were revealed Acting Commander Janet Stevenson did not disclose what led police to raid Brown's home when she spoke at a press conference but said the investigation had been a 'proactive' one. 'It was very complex… it wasn't through someone's complaint,' Acting Commander Stevenson said on Tuesday. 'We didn't have a victim for quite some time.' Brown was arrested on May 12 but his identity and alleged crimes could not be published until police successfully sought to have a court suppression order lifted on Tuesday. Victoria's Department of Health and Victoria Police have urged the parents of 1,200 children who attended daycare centres where Brown worked to have them tested for infectious diseases. Brown's alleged offending occurred only during his employment at Creative Garden Early Learning Centre in Point Cook between October 2021 and February 2024. Pictures have emerged of Brown interacting with children at one of the daycare centres where he cared for children and police are investigating allegations of other offending at an Essendon facility. The alleged paedophile has distinctive arm tattoos and was known to dye his hair different colours. One photograph posted by his boyfriend on December 21 showed him with blue hair. Brown worked at 20 childcare centres over an eight-year period between January 2017 and May 2025, and authorities have contacted 2,600 families of children who attended those centres. Brown was not known to police before his arrest and had a valid Working With Children Check, which has since been cancelled. He will next appear at Melbourne Magistrates' Court on September 15. It was revealed on Wednesday a second Victorian man has been charged with 45 child sex offences as part of the police investigation into Brown. Michael Simon Wilson is facing charges including bestiality, rape and possession of child abuse material, according to court documents seen by the ABC. It is understood Brown and Wilson are known to each other, but Wilson's charges are not related to any childcare centre and involve different alleged victims. Wilson is due to appear in court in September on the same day as Brown. Responding to the charges laid against Brown, Premier Jacinta Allan said she was 'sickened by these allegations of abuse'. Minister for Children Lizzie Blandthorn said on Tuesday an investigation into whether there was anything educators could have done to prevent Brown's alleged offending would begin immediately. She said her department would consider other security measures including the introduction of security cameras. 'One of the areas, for example… that I would like to see brought forward is a national system for registration for workers,' she said. Acting Commander Stevenson said the case had been 'deeply distressing'. 'We know there are potentially people out there who have information about this investigation that they wish to pass on to police,' she said. 'This may be people who had children at a centre where the man worked or staff who may have worked with him and noticed particular behaviours.' Full list of impacted centres Nino Early Learning Adventures, Point Cook: 15 Jan 2017 – 9 Jun 2019 Explorers Early Learning, Point Cook: 18 Aug 2019 – 27 Oct 2019 Casual work: 10 Nov 2019 & 22 Dec 2019 Adventurers Education, Wyndham Vale: 25 Nov 2019 – 24 Jul 2020 Only About Children, Williamstown: 28 Oct 2020 – 30 Mar 2021 Wallaby Childcare Centre, Sanctuary Lakes: 13 Apr 2021 – 25 May 2021 Nido Early Learning School, Werribee: 21 Jun 2021 – 16 Jul 2021 Creative Gardens, Point Cook: 28 Oct 2021 – 2 Feb 2024 Leopold World of Learning, Leopold: 9 Feb 2023 – 13 Feb 2023 Greenwood, Point Cook: 14 Feb 2023 – 10 Mar 2023 Little Blossoms Child Care Centre, Werribee: 14 Aug 2023 – 17 Aug 2023 D.O.T.S Occupational Therapy for Children, Footscray: 1 Mar 2024 – 30 Apr 2024 Aussie Kindies Early Learning, Sunbury: 13 Aug 2024 – 21 Aug 2024 Milestones Early Learning, Werribee: 14 Aug 2024 – 16 Aug 2024 Milestones Early Learning, Hoppers Crossing: 19 Aug 2024 – 19 Aug 2024 Papilio Early Learning, Hoppers Crossing: 22 Aug 2024 – 12 Mar 2025 Kids Academy, Melton: 12 Sep 2024 – 12 Sep 2024 Kids Academy, Kensington: 7 Oct 2024 – 9 Oct 2024 Aussie Kindies Early Learning, Keilor: 11 Feb 2025 – 11 Feb 2025 Papilio Early Learning, Essendon: 17 Feb 2025 – 9 May 2025 Milestones Early Learning, Bundoora: 8 May 2025 – 8 May 2025
ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
Ministers are racing to close gaps in child safety left open for years
Ministers are racing to close gaps in Australia's child safety laws that have been left open for years, in the wake of another shocking case of alleged child abuse at a centre in Victoria. State and territory governments have responsibility for child protection and enforcement in childcare centres — but it is the Commonwealth that funds providers. That tension is again in question after a 26-year-old man was charged with dozens of child abuse offences at the Creative Garden Early Learning Centre in Point Cook. It has reopened questions about gaps in Australia's laws, including how unsafe centres continue to receive funding, around how safety standards are enforced and around the systems monitoring workers — which remain a patchwork of rules a decade on from recommendations for reform. Education Minister Jason Clare has reaffirmed that the government is urgently progressing laws it announced in March to strip funding from childcare providers who repeatedly fail to meet their safety obligations. Meanwhile, work continues to ban personal mobile phones, improve monitoring and compliance and finally address the patchwork Working With Children Check system. But some educators say the system needs a fundamental rebuild — and a decade on from the child abuse royal commission, there are calls for another deep investigation into what is failing. Georgie Dent, chief executive at The Parenthood, says the early childhood sector needs a fundamental overhaul. Ms Dent says quality is closely linked with safety, and that ensuring highly qualified early educators is a necessary "vaccine" against predators. But with the Commonwealth funding providers and the states funding compliance, Ms Dent said failures often devolved into a blame game. "It is possible for the states to point to the Commonwealth government and say 'you should have done this', and it is possible for the Commonwealth government to point to the states and say 'you should have done this'. "The point is we have now got parents who have been notified that their small, vulnerable children have been put at incredible risk. They don't care who specifically is responsible for what part of the system." Ms Dent has repeated her call for an independent national childcare commission that could act as a watchdog. "Our quality framework is world-leading, but if it's not able to be implemented and enforced then it doesn't count," Ms Dent said. "When we have got services operating that don't meet the minimum standards and there is not an urgent intervention … that is a problem. Speaking to ABC Afternoon Briefing, national children's commissioner Anne Hollonds agreed that Australia needed a regulator with "teeth" that could properly enforce safety requirements in childcare facilities. Ms Dent said childcare centres should not receive funding if they were not meeting minimum standards — something the federal government was now developing to cut off "repeat offenders". The federal government in March announced it would legislate to cut off funding to childcare providers who repeatedly failed their safety and quality obligations. Mr Clare committed to passing the laws this year, saying they would not only remove funding from unsafe providers, but also prevent the expansion of providers if their existing centres were not meeting safety standards. "If services aren't up to scratch, that they aren't meeting safety and quality standards, we [will] have the power to cut funding off," Mr Clare said. Shadow Education Minister Jonno Duniam told the ABC the Coalition was willing to support whatever was needed to see those reforms passed "urgently". "Every measure must be considered, and any step taken to prevent this from happening again," Senator Duniam said. "We are yet to see the detail, and yes that is a very important part of this process, to make sure what is put on the table is adequate … but if it is about repeat offenders and centres that aren't meeting the mark when it comes to protecting our young, then there is no excuse. Repeat failure, there is no excuse for and no space for. With the legislation still being drafted, it is not clear what bar will be set for centres to be approved to receive funding, or what will be counted as "repeat" or egregious failures to see funding cut off. Those laws will also strengthen "market entry gateways" in the early childhood sector to deter providers with poor track records. Essentially, it will mean providers applying to receive Child Care Subsidy funding will have to prove that existing centres meet Australia's safety and quality standards — lifting the bar above the current expectation that providers are only "working towards" compliance. That would include proving adequate supervision, awareness of child protection responsibilities and that sufficient staffing arrangements are in place. Providers black-listed from operating in a sector would also be prevented from jumping to other parts of the care economy. But experts say the checks to detect unsafe providers remain flawed. The education minister accepted on Wednesday morning that it had taken too long to reform background safety checks on childcare workers, with recommendations made by royal commissioners a decade ago still not implemented. The Working With Children Check system is managed by states, and while a national database has been developed, the system remains a patchwork that doesn't perfectly share information across borders, including when violations are recorded. There also remains a lack of understanding among some educators about what they are required to report. A decade ago, royal commissioners recommended a national, harmonised system that was readily accessible to all states and territories, with enhanced and continuous monitoring. Those reforms have not been completed. Ms Dent said as it stood, there was a lack of clarity around federal and state governments, departments and agencies about who was responsible for the system, and that uncertainty allowed people to "slip through the cracks". A meeting of attorneys-general next month will progress reforms to the check, and federal Attorney-General Michelle Rowland will write to her state counterparts this week to advise that those reforms be treated as a priority, with an expectation that it be progressed at their next meeting. Mr Clare said that was necessary work, but it could not be the only answer. "They're not the only thing we need to fix or reform here. They are not a silver bullet," he said. "There are too many examples where a perpetrator is eventually caught and arrested and sentenced [where] they are somebody who got a Working With Children Check because they had no prior criminal record." Victoria announced today it would fast-track work to establish an early educator register, similar to those that exist for school teachers, which would allow the movements of employees across providers to be tracked. A national register is being developed by federal, state and territory ministers, who have agreed to expedite it. Even before this week's disturbing revelations, Commonwealth, state and territory governments were progressing reforms in response to another case of widespread child abuse across multiple facilities that identified weaknesses in Australia's background check system and a number of other parts of the childcare sector. But as another crisis rocks the country, some states are again going their own way. A voluntary code was introduced last year to ban mobile phones in childcare centres as a stopgap, while governments pursued legislation to force a ban of personal devices — laws that Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan confirmed on Wednesday would be brought forward in that state. New South Wales said last week it was working urgently to strengthen its laws, including by establishing an independent regulator, based on a review by former ombudsman Chris Wheeler. Mr Clare says ministers are considering that review, including a recommendation to require CCTV to be installed in childcare centres that breach safety obligations and where the regulator holds safety concerns. "This is one of the things that ministers are looking at across the board as we develop nationwide reforms," Mr Clare said. NSW has given its in-principle support for CCTV laws, and Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan said the state would examine the use of CCTV as part of a snap review. Last week's meeting also agreed to changes that required mandatory reports of complaints of abuse to be made within 24 hours rather than seven days — and that systems would be upgraded to allow near-real-time updates of working with children concerns. But both the federal education minister and shadow education minister have rejected calls for another urgent national inquiry or royal commission, saying enough reviews had laid out what needs to change. Ms Dent says measures such as mobile phone bans are helpful, "but they are not adequate". "We don't need a reaction to the latest horror stories, we need systemic reform," Ms Dent said. She repeated her calls for how the sector was funded to be rebuilt — with centres funded directly and held accountable for that funding, like Australia's school system, rather than a subsidy paid to families. The national children's commissioner said the current system had failed families, and would continue to do so until governments made child safety a priority. "Why have we been so slow to get on with this?" Ms Hollonds asked. "In a way, because it is children, we haven't gotten on with it fast enough."
Daily Telegraph
4 hours ago
- Daily Telegraph
Second man reportedly known to alleged Melbourne childcare predator charged
Don't miss out on the headlines from Parenting. Followed categories will be added to My News. *Content warning: Contains content that some may find distressing* A second man has been charged with a number of child sexual offences following Tuesday's revelation of the alleged large-scale sexual abuse of children at Victorian childcare centres. The charges against the man, named Michael Simon Wilson, stem from the probe into alleged childcare worker Joshua Brown. Yesterday, Victorian Police revealed they had charged Mr Brown, 26, with 70 offences after he allegedly abused eight children at a Point Cook childcare centre in Melbourne. Police allege the children were aged between five months and two years. Want to join the family? Sign up to our Kidspot newsletter for more stories like this. The police allege childcare worker Joshua Brown sexually abused multiple children. Picture Supplied. RELATED: Man charged with sexually abusing children at Melbourne childcare centre "You can't repeat it on television, but she's right to be mad" A widespread investigation has now been launched, with Victoria's chief health officer saying 1200 children have been recommended to undergo infectious diseases testing. Mr Wilson's alleged offences are not believed to involve childcare centres or any of Mr Brown's alleged victims. The two men are reportedly known to each other. Mr Wilson is due to appear at Melbourne Magistrates Court on September 15. On Wednesday, Education Minister Jason Clare revealed a close friend of his has been impacted by the allegations. 'I know that they're angry because one of those parents is a friend of mine and her two little girls are directly affected by this,' Mr Clare said on Wednesday. 'And I won't tell you what she told me last night because you can't repeat it on television, but she's right to be mad. 'I'm mad. I think anyone who works in the early education system and there's hundreds of thousands of fantastic people who do, would be angry today as well. 'And my friend is mad because of all of the stress and the trauma and the crap that she and her girls are going to have to go through in the weeks ahead.' Mr Clare said the problem of predators in childcare settings was 'serious' and required 'serious action'. 'It's one of the reasons why I put this on the top of the agenda when education ministers met last week,' he said. 'Let me be clear – when education ministers met to discuss child safety last week, we didn't discuss this case, but we discussed – what are the next steps that we need to take as a nation to make sure that our kids are safe in early education and care?' The government has already banned personal mobile phones in centres and changed rules around mandatory reporting from seven days to 24 hours following complaints about sexual or physical abuse. Education Minister Jason Clare has promised urgent reform to the child safety following Tuesday's revelation of alleged abuse at Victorian childcare centres. Picture: NewsWire / Nikki Short RELATED: Alleged childcare predator the son of Veronica Nelson prison guard 'It's taken too long to do the work necessary" Mr Clare promised further reforms, including cutting off funding for centres that fail to meet minimum standards. He also flagged changes to background checks for workers. 'It's taken too long to do the work necessary to make sure that our Working with Children Check system is up to scratch,' he said. 'I've spoken a number of times with the Attorney-General, Michelle Rowland, the new Attorney-General, and I think I can safely speak on her behalf – she agrees, and is determined to take the action necessary here to make sure that our Working with Children Checks across the nation are up to scratch. 'That'll be something that will be discussed by attorneys-general when they meet next month.' He cautioned that a working with children check was not a 'silver bullet'. 'In too many examples, a perpetrator is eventually caught and arrested and sentenced, there's somebody that got a Working with Children Check because they had no prior criminal record,' he said. 'And so it's only one of the things that we need to focus on here if we're serious about making sure that we keep our kids safe.' Originally published as Second man reportedly known to alleged Melbourne childcare predator charged
Daily Mail
4 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Anthony Albanese is always talking about 'cheaper childcare'. Now, as lone wolf predators threaten our kids, there's a VERY obvious word the PM keeps forgetting to say, writes DANIEL PIOTROWSKI
There is something fundamentally rotten at the heart of Australia's child care system. We now have egregious examples - some alleged, some proven - of it failing to protect our children. Victoria Police revealed on Tuesday that detectives had charged a 26-year-old male childcare worker, Joshua Dale Brown, with 70 sexual offences involving eight children at a centre at Point Cook, south-west of Melbourne 's CBD. The charges included rape. To make matters worse, authorities revealed that Brown had worked at least 20 different centres between 2017 and 2025, prompting health officials to ask some 1,200 children to get tested for possible 'infections'. Authorities were deliberately cryptic about what exactly they meant, but the subtext was clear. They were worried children had been infected with STIs as a result of Brown's suspected horrors. They have real reason to be concerned because the country was only recently rocked by a similar set of horrifying circumstances where a predator preyed on children in plain sight. Brisbane childcare worker Ashley Paul Griffith last year admitted to raping and sexually abusing 69 girls over almost 20 years of offending, both at Queensland childcare centres and overseas. Griffith was jailed for life last October - a sentence he is appealing. Meanwhile, he is separately accused of a litany of similar offences in Sydney between 2014 and 2018. The stories go on. In May, it was revealed another childcare worker was filmed slapping a crying baby in the face at a for-profit centre in South Strathfield, in western Sydney. The horrific video was sent on Snapchat as if it was a joke. Brown, Griffith and the unnamed baby slapper were all self-evidently allowed to work with children. Brown had a valid Victorian Working With Children check at the time of his arrest. It obviously wasn't worth the paper it was written on, but the authorities checked whether he had a criminal record or had been listed on a sex offender or professional standards register. It's the same story for Griffith, who had a Blue Card, Queensland's equivalent check, but still went on to offend - despite complaints - until he was ultimately brought to justice. Queensland has launched an inquiry into how its system failed. Victoria is likely to follow. But this is clearly a national problem. There have been too many rotten eggs for it not to be a systemic issue. Like many parents, three mornings a week, I drop my little one at daycare. The educators care quite a lot - I can tell from the work they do out of hours and the detailed reports we get about our son's behaviour. The quality of care matters. But there's too many examples in this country of children falling through the cracks - or worse, into nightmare situations such as these. And it could get worse. Demand for child care is booming. Throughout his time in office, and during his re-election campaign, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese spoke a lot about 'cheaper child care'. He wants to move Australia toward a system of 'universal' daycare. Under that vision, every parent would pay a flat fee and centres could be built on school grounds. 'The objective of universal, affordable child care is one I certainly share,' he said earlier this year. But the Prime Minister rarely - if ever - mentions the most important word of all. Child care also has to be safe.
News.com.au
4 hours ago
- News.com.au
Sylvia Jeffreys breaks down when discussing Melbourne childcare worker charged with abuse: ‘The system has failed'
Today Extra host Sylvia Jeffreys broke down in tears on TV this morning when discussing the case about a child care worker accused of sexually abusing children at a Melbourne child care centre. The mother of two got emotional as she and fill-in co-host Richard Wilkins discussed the sickening news story in a segment on Wednesday's broadcast, one day after police charged a 26-year-old man for more than 70 counts of child abuse. 'They are all allegations at this point of course, but they have rocked every parent,' Jeffreys said on air. 'They have rocked the industry. It is deeply disturbing, but it is not an isolated incident.' 'There have been media reports for many months now of abuse and neglect in for-profit childcare centres. The system has failed these families, the system has failed these children and it has failed the many wonderful educators who work in the industry as well.' Joshua Brown from Point Cook was charged with offences including sexual activity in presence of a child under 16, sexual assault of a child under 16 and possessing child abuse material. Distressed families gathered outside a Point Cook facility at the centre of the investigation on Tuesday, trying to find answers as the allegations sent waves of fear and confusion through the community. Jeffreys feels their pain and says the federal government needs to step in to ensure this never happens in Australian child care centres again. 'Nothing could be more urgent than this issue right now because there will be parents this morning who will feel reluctant to drop their child at day-care today, and that should never be the case,' Jeffreys added before fighting back tears. 'I'm sorry. No, no, it is so hard. It is. It is so hard to even talk about it, let alone go through this. The parents who are going through this this morning, it needs to be at the top of federal, the federal government's agenda today and tomorrow and every day until we see change.' Wilkins, who was sat next to Jeffreys offering his support, told her, 'You speak for the nation. Sylvia.' A widespread investigation has now been launched, with Victoria's chief health officer saying 1200 children have been recommended to undergo infectious diseases testing. Victoria Police say Brown's charges relate to eight children who were placed at a Point Cook childcare centre between April 2022 and January 2023. The families of the eight alleged victims have been notified, and offered available support services. Police are alleging the children targeted were aged between five months and two years. Brown has been remanded in custody and will appear before Melbourne Magistrates' Court on September 15.
